@@artafaria except Azir still has a brain and people to tell him to do good. Viego the ruined simp has none of this. He's far too gone on his toxic obssession with isolde that he can't reason. And it's not like he wants to anyway. Viego is forever cursed as a spirit. Azir has the option still.
I think the idea of "I, Azir, am afraid of the nobles staging a coup because they would overthrow me and well, we can't have that, I'm born to rule, I am the destined ruler!" is a bit unfair. Yes, that is be a factor. But it's also important to consider the following. Say Azir did free the slaves right when he became emperor, and then this feared coup does happen. If Azir survives the coup, no harm no foul. But if Azir were to die in the coup, or get his power ousted from him, what would happen? The slaves would go RIGHT back to being slaves. His efforts would be for naught, and he would not have the power or influence to ever free the slaves, so they would remain slaves. It's not JUST so he can remain in power, damn everything else. It's because he is in a position to do something about it, and he is certain that if he acts right away he will jeopardize that position. That's why he waits until he Ascends. Because then he will have the power to be confident that a coup will not overthrow him, and thus the slaves can remain free. The two desires are not exclusive to each other, and Azir DOES want the slaves freed, which is more than literally anybody else in power in Shurima. If Azir was ousted, there would be nobody else to actually do it. And that's not even getting into the likely significant casualties in the freed slaves, whether or not a coup succeeded or failed. And yes, he is arrogant and he is doing this out of a sense of "I am the only one capable of doing this". But it's not the only consideration to be made. And this of course doesn't excuse all of the executions and the whole being a dictator part. But saying that him not wanting to be overthrown because he will lose all power and that's the only reason is a tad unfair in my opinion
I dislike the implication that the dichotomy is good personabhorrently evil Azir doesn't need a full on "redemption arc", he needs to improved as a person. Also there is actually nothing for Xerath, he's been fully consumed by lust for power. The baccai and Renekton and all that.
Water and Shade to You is one of my favorite stories in league. Azir blinded by his hatred of Xerath and driven by his ego attempts to slaughter the village Xerath was born in until a little girl reminds him of the kindness he showed Sivir.
Azir's story reminds me of the enlightened monarchs (roughly 1700 Europe) than more average dictators: royalty that wanted some social change, but with hereditary kings still firmly planted on the top of the structure
To be fair the idea of a benevolent dictator isn’t without historical precedent. Some of the first historically known dictators were appointed by the Roman senate to act with absolute power in times of crisis where the senate would be too slow/indecisive to act effectively. Now while many would refuse to yield this power there were many who did after the times of crisis had past, notably the most famous Cincinnatus who famously left his farm and took command of the Roman army, defeated the enemies of Rome and then let go of the power and picked up his plow once more, and is now considered and exemplar of civic duty
In my eyes the problem with Azir is the opposite of Sylas - both are very well written morally grey characters but for some reason riot insists on skewing them as either good (the former) or bad (the latter) instead of just letting them be grey
@@artistaroundtheblock2047 yeah if there was a visual novel centered around dating azir then you would probably be shuriman, also I don’t know of a visual novel that allows to customize your characters, typically they’re unseen entity so the person playing it can get more involved
I think the Xerath Azir dynamic is really interesting. They made each other. Xerath was enabled by Azir, in an act of kindness. But a single act of kindness was not enough for Xerath. Of course it wasnt. He was a slave. Being granted a name and the ability to read some books was a surface level kindness from an ignorant aristocrat. But he could use Azir. So he did terrible things in the cover of darkness. He fed Azir ambition. Killed his rivals. But the freedom of the slaves seemed to never be coming. So he set up the ascension, so he could usurp it. But Azir had always wanted to free the slaves. He saw the humanity in Xerath when he named him. Saw that slavery was wrong. He was simply too low in the line of succession. Until these bizarre events kept happening. Acts of god. Xerath whispered to him that it was truly his right to rule. Not just shurima, but everywhere. Azir was seduced by power. A noble with good intentions turned to darkness by someone who wished for nothing more than for the kingdom to fall. A despot created by one who suffered under his predecessors. It was ironic. Yet deep inside of Azir, he still believed what he was doing was for the good of everyone. As he went to ascend, he felt invincible. He could finally do the good that he needed to do. He freed the slaves. But he had waited too long. Xerath had lost all hope that he would be freed. He had come to hate Azir. Yet, the freedom had come. But it came too late. Too much was already prepared. The stage had been set. Last minute theatrics would not stop him. And the kingdom fell. Its a classic tragedy. Its straight up some MacBeth shit. Both Azir and Xerath are extremely complex characters. I really wish Xerath could get an ASU so that he could look better, and maybe get some new voicelines that really lined up with who he is now. Xerath has a lot that could be explored. but, this was an azir video, so Ill leave that for.... like... 5 years from now, when we get to x.
Honestly Azir is probably the most reasonable of the two parties looming over Shurima. Even if they're played as jokes we do see that it's entirely possible to talk to Azir. He's clearly never had to before, and he's incredibly bad at it, but it's still an option that works. I think if Taliyah or Nasus got he could totally be "redeemed". That being said if Xerath does something drastic or someone like KSante tries to immediately confront him he's absolutely going full kill everyone dictator and Shurima is fucked lol.
@@lok4890 he also can be a bit... unreasonable, he wanted to burn Xerath origin village to the ground just because he was born then and a child talked him out of it
From what I remember in Egyptian mythology, I’m pretty sure you’re correct that Azir is supposed to be more like Ra thematically than Horus. Ra was a more vengeful god while Horus was friendlier I supposed. Also, Ra’s symbol was a sundisk LMAO.
Too many people get "good person" and "good character" confused when talking about this stuff and think that if you find Harvey Birdman, Dictator at Sand an interesting character and a good example of classic hubris then you must approve of his practice of murdering people who disagree with him. These people frustrate me, and yet all of them remain unmurdered. It's the strangest thing.
Feel like lot of content creators completely miss the mark of Azir's paranoia about losing the throne. Azir wasn't paranoid about losing power because he thought he was divinely ordained. He was paranoid because if he just freed the slaves it would most likely led to him bring assassinated like his entire family was, plunge the nation into civil war, and whoever emerged victorious would completely undo all the work he put into freeing the slaves and make all his efforts null and void. He wasn't some power hungry ruler that believed he was a god. He was a person that knew about the complex and difficult reality of how he had to accomplish his goal while also being fully away of his mortality despite being a emperor. Ascending was less because he thought he deserved it and more of if he ascends no one would be abee to argue against certain decisions, like freeing all the slaves, since of they disagreed with that instead of facing a man they would be facing a demi-god
I think people who claim azir is"le bad" and xerath is "le good" because slavery clearly only watch certain youtuber's videos and do not actually read the supplemental material like LoR
Xerath was once a victim........once. He no longer is. His motives were twisted with his newfound power. In some form, he and Azir are the two sides of the same coin.
@@x-nimator9997 being a victim does not make someone immune to victimizing others. i wish more people knew that. after all, xerath is the reason renekton went insane was left with burning hatred for his own brother
@@Underworlder5 i'm very annoyed that ppl keeps painting xerath as the victim still, considering he and azir both have comitted atrocities. There's a lot of grey tones
Literally Xerath was entirely justified in everything he did, murdering your masters as a slave is based and good actually. There's no amount of murder and battle against your slavers that is morally unjust because you are a literal slave, that's a fate worse than death. He didn't know Shurima would explode when he stole the disc's power, and he didn't know that it would break his mind. Everything Xerath did while enslaved was good. The things he did when he finally gained freedom are literally equivalent to Azir.
@@that_one_MM that is a dangerous mentality to have. there is a limit to how far you can go, no matter how noble your goal it. this kind of thinking is exactly how good people go bad
I always felt that Azir needs a little more grace. Not saying you can't him, he has very hateable traits. But as the story pans he didn't renege on his deal. He was going to free the slaves. The thing is since he was attached to Shurima and not the slaves he was willing to wait to godhood for absolute authority. With that authority he was going to free the slaves. The problem is that he didn't tell Xerath that and he spoke out of turn with him. Xerath understandably has been going through a whole lot of shit for the hope that Azir would keep his promise. That hope shattered when Azir spoke out of turn. Then Xerath just went fuck it, better die free(really rule free with power) than be alive with my people as slaves. Which hurts the most cause when Xerath did what he did, Azir was going to keep his end of the deal. Literally thanking Xerath for his patience, then bang the city falls and brothers hate each other. Do we need more scenes and context for them both? I dont know, but with what is given even as a black american is tragic for both parties.
Aye it always struck me as odd that people seem to ignore the part that he was fully intending to free the slaves, and it does make sense to want the power of ascencion in order to make sure the nobility and other slave owners couldn't go against him at all. Because it is important to remember that freeing the slaves wouldn't be all that easy, a lot of powerful people's prosperity relied on them. Doing so recklessly is just a recipe for rebellion and strife. He should have communicated that with Xerath, and it is stupid he didn't, we didn't get a reason why he didn't iirc, and that's what makes the story tragic. Azir at the moment feels like he could go either way, he could become a legitimate villain if people keep snubbing him, assuming he is in fact evil and treating him accordingly. Road to hell is paved with good intentions and all that. Or he could become a saviour for the region of Shurima, provided people actually give him a chance and try to help him. I haven't kept up to date with his lore so I have no clue if he's done anything bad.
@@cindermoth3421 well even understanding that, the argument can be made that Azir didn't even deserve Ascension - in fact, it's my headcannon that if Xerath hadn't stopped him, Azir would've been rejected by the Sun Disk due to the fact that Azir put the safety of his empire over the safety of his people. yes, announcing the freedom of the slaves prior to his ritual would've meant putting himself at risk, but it is through that selfish act of not fulfilling his promise and being more preoccupied with his rule rather than the treatment of his people that he would've been killed during the ritual.
@@cindermoth3421 that is one thing that irks me. slavery is undoubtedly bad, but some people have a way too black and white view of it and go "just end slavery bro". kind of hard to do that if the nation has engaged in slave labor for centuries and likely relies on it for a stable income. azir only felt comfortable abolishing slavery when he had enough power to do whatever he wanted with no repercussions. ending such a tradition is not something done overnight, and definitely not alone
I have to applaud nicky’s abality to comment for us while getting ran over by a horse 27 times in a row as he plays azir. At some point I even wondered if it was voice over-ed this time around, I think that says a lot ! I’d be stuttering and asphyxiating in my own sweat and tears if I were in his place. Great work.
12:45 Isn't it that azir creates sand soldiers made of sand in the image of soldiers of the past and not raise the dead? It wouldn't really make sense for someone who can control the sand in many ways to just have necromancy powers.
11:34 from what I've seen either its both, or just azir. again his good intentions mean nothing if its actions do nothing, just because he cured cancer doesn't justify genocide, espically when he does it with the purpose of saving only himself. Xerath is the monster after the Ancencion, he was Morally grey whe he used to be human, now he's just a villian adding to Riots bad attemps to make Tyrants look like they have a point with slavery, with unjust athourity. Azir is the vilian, he's monster who believes himself as the hero and thats the point he needs to change otherwise he's never gonna be revived ever again and shurmia may stay dead for aslong as someone else doesn't just figure it out.(Azir thinks he's the only one who can save shurmia, again Arrogance and egotism destroying him) Basically Azir is Dark grey, Xerath before acension is grey, After he's a villian, Renekton is a poor soul so grey and Nasus is light grey.
Controversial opinion : Dictator just means leader with supreme power. Indeed, dictators always end up morally fucked, because that is just what supreme power does to a mf. But the definition of dictator does not implie being a douch, a dictator could theoretically be a good and kind leader (althought extremely unlikely)
Well, you said were prepared for it so here goes: All of you "lore masters" who hate Azir are stupid and I, the number one Azir apologist, am here to explain why. @5:54 For you to immediately assume that Azir is not only the reason for his mother's infertility but is silencing people to cover it up is not only a revealing display of bias, but it also shows very clearly that you did not read Xearth's Bio. In Xearth bio it's not just implied that he is the one responsible for all of these incidents- *IT'S EXPLICITLY STATED*. He told himself everything he did he did to keep Azir safe, initially anyway. Azir's father hated him, and the idea that he was in line for the throne filled him with rage. Xerath knew the instant the queen produced another viable heir Azir's father would have him assassinated. On the topic of the executions, we don't know the context surrounding these. Regardless, openly speaking ill of not only a prince but the *crown* prince next in line for the throne- _IN THESE TIMES?_ It would have looked worse if he DIDN'T have them executed. @6:22 *_NOT READING XEARTH'S BIO MOMENT_* Xearth, the _literal_ closest person in the world to him whom he loved as a brother, spent *YEARS* filling Azir's head with delusions of grandeur so he could get him to attempt ascension and steal the power for himself. Why? Xearth thought Azir would free him the moment he could, and when he didn't Xearth assumed the worst of him- that he was no different from the people who put him in chains. But Azir wasn't just some pompous asshole, he really believed in his vision of Shurima as a golden, blessed land and wanted to share that bounty with the rest of the world. Xerath saw his angle and pushed him in a certain direction. We normally don't blame people for being manipulated, especially when it's easy to see how they could be manipulated, but apparently, victim blaming is the cool hip thing to do in a certain section of the lore community. @10:17 Yes, yes, dictators bad, fascists bad, communists okay, and socialists good. Great, now that we've all got all of our leftist brownies points out of the way, we can actually talk. Azir's character archetype is based on the concept of a "benevolent dictator" which states that the best, most efficient form of governance is one where one central power acts altruistically and makes only the best decisions for the good of his people. And this seems to be in line with Azir's vision of a worldwide Shurima. He believes himself a good man dedicated to making good decisions on behalf of the people. The problem with this archetype is it's usually impossible to achieve. Even the most benevolent dictator is someone's tyrant and I think Azir's stories do a good job of exploring this concept. If you want to read more on it I strongly recommend the TVtropes article on the topic. So yeah, it is a bit more nuanced than "dictator bad" *shock emoji* @13:15 I agree with some of this. A lot of Shurima is morally gray and I'd like to believe Azir is being built up for a redemption Arc (scorching Xearth's village can be seen as his lowest moment). But I cannot agree with making Azir out to be a villain- especially not in the grander narrative. This is only possible with a very selective reading of the text. He's a tragic hero more than anything. He desperately wants to do good and truly believes that he is, but the suit of negative character traits he acquires throughout his life prevents him from seeing things outside of his perspective. 'Hero with an F in Good' is another trope that fits him really well. I don't think Shurima has a TRUE villain, but if I had to choose somebody the choice is obvious. It's Xearth. Uneqovically. A) He's certified insane. B) He has all of Azir's power-hungry nature with none of the good qualities to balance it out. C) He destroyed an *ENTIRE CIVILIZATION* because he _THOUGHT_ his best friend wasn't a real one. Anyone trying to call Azir a villain when Xearth is in the room has _not read Xearth's Bio_. Which is quite good by the way, they do a really good job of making him a complex character rather than evil for the sake of evil. Ultimately, you cannot tell Azir's story with Xearth's and the whole thing is very sad. An entire empire was felled because two extremely good friends had a critical failure in communication and interpersonal dynamics. It's the type of grater-than-life narrative with a very relatable human core that I love. Xerath is clearly the bad guy here but as I said before I don't think it's fair to call him a True Villian. He's the product of an inhumane system that offers you only two options: surrender or violence. And he saw where surrendering got his family. If Azir could have set aside his emperor's pride and treated Xearth like the equals he said they were then all of this could have been avoided. If Xearth could have trusted Azir and been open and vulnerable with him then this also could have been avoided. I hope Azir can have a full-blown redemption arc, just to make all the haters mad yet I don't think that's where the story is going. I think their stories end with a double 'Redemption Equals Death', but not before joining hands in razing Shurima one last time with their petty war. And I'll still be right there saying "Azir did nothing wrong".
Its weird because if Azir wasnt ruling then the slaves wouldnt be able to get free so its kinda dumb to be like,"oh hes just obsessed with power" like yeah he kinda had to be in power for slavery to stop.
I still can't understand why most of the people thinks what Azir is "evil", because of the slaves. Yes Azir is a jerk, selfish, ego-hungry emperor, who blinded himself and let the Shurima die. But it was in the past. From his voice lines and main story, Azir now is much more wiser. (just read his short story god danmit) He learned how his pride doomed Shurima and what it was his fault. Not Xerath. His. He let Shurima die. And now he wants to bring people to the glory. Riot even himself said what Azir is a noble, but pride emperor. He is a good person inside and unlike ANY of other leaders, he REALLY CARE about his own people and how his mistakes doomed everything. He REALLY wants begin a new era, where his people live in paradise. I still can't get it how people sympathy more to Xerath, which is a true evil in this story. (Just read their story's and combine with cards from LoR. This situation remind me about Aatrox. Aatrox is a amazing character, but people doesn't want to read his lore. Situation with Azir is the same. People just *don't want* to understand characters clearly and judge them, like they know them.)
Azir: I will unite the whole continent of Shurima under the banners of my glorious empire. The community: What a fucking dictator. Swain: I will unite the whole world under the banner of my glorious empire. The community: OMG what a chad.
@@TonySandMan wait they made them racist? Isnt theire Goal to unite all of Freljord so that starvation, coldness and survival would be beaten thogeter?
Azir reads as a heroic character that is easily influenced to me. I think he's a good person on the inside, but too indoctrinated by being, y'know, an emperor's son.
@@lok4890 As Nicky puts it, you can't really be a "good" dictator. While I do agree that he's relatively kind given his position, he still actively kills people that besmirch his name.
@@SingingInferno fair enough on that bit, although that bit of executing people was speciffically on the bit where people started claiming that Azir was the cause of the queen getting constant stillborns. I think that is a bit further than just talking shit about him, but not cool still.
@@SingingInferno yeah pretty much. Although acussing someone of being the reason someone else gets stillborns is kinda dark lol. Yeah, still, you are right, its way too much for it.
Stoneweaver: So Azir, you say you are the emperor of all Shurima? Azir: YES. I. AM. Stoneweaver: But I don't recognize you as my emperor Azir: HELL. TO. YOU.
People confuse good character with good person, Azir is not a good person, he's a tyrant but also he's charm enough to people not to question his methods
Azir didnt prevent his mother from having children, Xerath did. Xerath instilled arrogance into Azir, he used to be a decent guy before all the manipulation.
5:42 Well then isn't that a flawed individual, He's a person who allowed his worst impulsises to control him and become a horrible person: a tyrany. He's not morally grey anymore, He's villain and sadly So xerath because Riot wants you to think "I mean if both are evil then who really is the right" when one shouldn't be at all since Freedom is objectively a moral good action to give and have, Xerath doesn't care for freedom anymore he just became Azir with lighitng which sucks ass as Xerath is supposed to be the consequense not another problem for everyone.
10:16 You can, in fact, be a dictator without being a 'f*ing awful person'. A dictator is just someone with full powers; they can be good or bad, as the definition doesn't specify. On the other hand, a tyrant is a cruel leader with full powers. A tyrant is necessarily bad, not a dictator. There are a few examples of dictators that can be described as 'good', like Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus, some Roman emperors like Marcus Aurelius & Antoninus Pius (although they had the Senate to mediate their power), and even perhaps George Washington (though it seems like a stretch). There are other historical examples of people who were given full powers, yet were not tyrannical or awful. A dictatorship is about the power someone has. A tyranny is about the way said person uses their powers. Great video though !
14:04 which yeah that sucks ass, they could've given him the libertian look since thats his hole thing, Knowlegde he'd have a bag he carries for books he likes to read, wear heavy armor with robes that make him clean shaven and protected except for his face as I'm going to ingore him being basically azir with death powers and make him the only Human like acended out of all of them, so he'd show his dog face with glasses as his sickness has disrupted his eyes and him having a disability as an acended connects him even more as a person, someone who's imperfect, someone who's human. Atleast thats a way to improve Riot Nasus that skinline could've been so Awsome.
Not that I want Shurima Fried Chicken to have some right, but it'd be kinda tragic and funny if Azir freed the slaves, then got the boot, and the new rulers just said fuck that they're as free as trials that require your credit card
4:07 talk about timing, still though I do belief Azir is a Villian with humanity a Human Villian, since I mean his actions say it himself, he isn't a Mustache tweller which makes him intersting and work just he isn't morally grey thats not the point, its that he chooses to be evil as a person, him being dark grey is that example or morality. Xerath used Terrible methods to free his people, he's not a villian because of it he's more of an antagonist with good intentions terrible methods that work, Xerath should have comeback with only one idea in mind:Burn that Bird and his pathetic sandcastle to the ground and free the slaves. as He then excuses any action he does like gaslighting Renekton to get in the way of his own brother so he has someone less to deal with.
no no, Xerath is a mustache twirler level villain. He is pillaging and destroying everything he sees, and killing anyone he pleases (including the slaves he didnt free because he killed everyone in shurima) Azir is evil, but not a villain because he isnt really dangerous. Being a horrible person dosnt make you a villain, doing horrible things does, and Azir dosnt do much of that while its Xeraths entire life rn.
10:10 Technically you could be a dictator and still be kind. In the Roman Republic the word dictator designated a temporary magistrate who was granted extraordinary powers in order to deal with state crises. Modern dictators, however, resemble ancient tyrants rather than ancient dictators. (Julius Caesar was proclaimed "dictator (consul) for life" (dictator perpetuo)) In its purest sense the word mean absolute power in one persons hand (absolutism is also a different expression for the same phenomen)
i have never actually read azir's story as i have trouble reading for more than 3 minutes and the only reason anyone has ever given me before for why azir is bad was "he didn't free the slaves" which i found weird because "i'll stop being emperor or get killed if i free the slaves" isn't just a completely selfish reason to not do it, because the thing is, if he frees the slaves and the other elites dethrone him or assassinate him, they'll just enslave everyone he freed, if he manages to even free anyone besides xerath before he loses power/dies, waiting until he knows he is safe was definitely selfish at least partially, but it was still the correct decision, so until now, thinking that's the only reason people think azir was bad i believed he was a good person until resurection/ascention which corrupted his mind in some way and cause him to go from "i want the best for my people" to "everything will be mine and anyone who tries stopping me will die" i think the reason a lot of people are rubbed the wrong way by this story is similar to sylas, an oppressed person is potrayed as the villain, xerath, a slave wants the freedom of all slaves but he possibly kills his best friends family and then his best friend for it and then causes almost everyone to die, the elites, innocent people including slaves, sylas, a mage in demacia tries to save someone, his powers go rouge and he accidentally kills someone, gets imprisoned and wants to free all mages, he is going to be executed so he takes the power of his best friend, betraying her by revealing her secret and also kills a lot of people, some innocent ones and he is so set on his goal to free mages that he has no problem killing his fellow mages to achieve that goal i do get why some people could be mad about that
6:50 I really disagree with the take that Azir waiting for the power of ascension to back up his decision to free the slaves and protect his power as entirely selfish. If he frees the slaves at an inopportune moment and he's dethroned in a coup, what point did freeing the slaves even serve? He needs that power to back up and maintain that call, because what happens in the case that he's dethroned? Well, the next ruler is probably going to be someone who wants to maintain the status quo and keep the slaves enslaved.
Whats amazing to me that Nickyboi while playing a game of League of Legends didn't show the slightest amount of frustration at all. Missed a cannon? No reaction. Dies to Hecarim? Not a word. Truly an inspiration.
9:42 It's a step in the right direction But it ofcourse doesn't change him for the better, it just makes even more egotistical. Again Azir is a Villian with some humanity left in him and Xerath should've been the oppisite, a hero with questionalble methods, Brutally destroying the tyrant is fine, since they don't give you any other choice, just allowing the hatred and seek for vengence may lead to trying to kill anyone who's related aka Sivir even thought she doesn't care to rule at all, prefers freedom. Basically they did Xerath bad man, he shouldn't be the sterotipical villian, his transformation is similar to Brand with the hole power thing, while brand personality I feel he should a representation of teh temptation of power in fire via being a seductive Charred man convincing you his melting flesh and bones are perfection, Xerath should be using it for something else than the most generic "I want to take over the world" idea that could be given, Why does he want to take over the world? if it was to give people their freedom I'd get it, being Ironcally a tyrant himself due to using the same power, just convincing himself he's freeing them from their shackles while adding ones with extra steps.
@@Rev1n05 As a huge Kassadin fanatic (only from lore, never actually played the champ), I doubt that's gonna be the case here. Kassadin seems very far from a racist, he'd problably despise the playerbase lol.
1:42 I believe is terrible that Xerath a Character made to be the consequenses of Azir is the "bad guy" it doesn't make sense that he wants to take over the world just because, he should be changed to fit his own goal with maybe more focus on Revenge and whats the point of it? Azir, the racist slavowing Tyrant is the Villian, I can't see how he's not, BUT he's a Complex Villian with an dilema with his Ego and self. He wants to be good just mess it up due to his uncontrolled pride getting in the way, He's isn't morally grey he's akin more to a Dark gray character who is evil with humanity. Xerath should be the oppisite a Light gray individual, someone's whos good with flaws that go against that. Nasus is mostly light gray, the light is him as person being a good person who wants his brother back and gray in the since he's not exactly doing anything against the Slavery. Renekton is holding onto unjustified rage, though he believes its justified due to his memory and emotions, making him dark grey, he only targets Nasus thats it. Basically I don't believe there aren'y villians or heros there are villians Azir is one, just not every character is too simple except for The stupid execution of Xerath that I believe mess up the message of getting better, as if Azir refuses to change Xerath SHOULD Rip him apart then free the slaves himself, so either azir allows the poeple he's damaged to Destroy him or he redeems himself. He's a villian that has the choice to be human, Xerath should be the Result of his only choosing his ego and Nasus and rekenton need more development.
Nasus is as evil as azir is, he does nothing about the tyrany or slaves in shurima, and he kills anyone who stand against him. Renekton is a violent psychopath that kills anything that comes near him, he then preceeds to eat them, enough said. Xerath is a violent tyrant that randomly destroys things and people because "i need more power" Azir is a tyrant that embodies historical egyptian pharaohs, he abuses his power and kills anyone who stands against him. The redeeming quality is that he cares for his people and country, and wants whats best for them. The thing with Azir and Nasus is that they are born into a time where everyone is evil if judged by modern standards, but judging by the times standards Azir is almost and ideal ruler. The thing is, you cant really condemn everyone in a society for inaction and not fixing the entire society instantly. Regents back then would also just kill anyone who disrespected them (disagreed) dosnt mean that every monarch ever was a horrible person, and we nowadays have just become moral paragons. Morality is subjective and judging by the times morality Azir and Nasus are pretty standup people.
Look at the Lux comic and the way it was written, I'm afraid Azir is cut from the same mold. "Oh this poor poor dictator is so nice and sweet and these tormented people who lived in agony all their life who finally decided to grab the ruling class by the balls are so mean to him this is a moraly gray story boohoo"
"Morally grey" seems to have evolved into code for "this character is obviously an asshole, but for some reason I very much relate to them/find them attractive, so I'll just focus on their singular redeeming quality and not think about how these feelings reflect on me personally."
@@A.C_B. legit the takes riot writters are making are bizarre to me. I'm not implying that they are like this or like that, I don't know them, but what they write about is often.... uncomfortable.Not in a good way, in a concerning way.
@@nonamesorry7135 bro in the story they very much make it a point that he is a terrible person by our standards, but the thing is, EVERYONE from before year 1900 is a horrible monster judging by modern day standards. We are going to be seen as barbaric savages in 200 years, but that does not mean that every person living now should be condemned. Nobody is a paragon of either evil or good, Azir is terrible in the way he rules, but that ruling system was already in place and it was hopeless for him to ever do anything else. If we judge him on intentions hes a fine person, but hes actions are cartoonishly evil, that is definitly morally grey. Also alot of rebellions were horrible, and the leaders were terrible people, not all stories have a villain and a hero, just because Xerath is bad dosnt mean Azir is good. Azir is an evil dictator but not the immediate danger to shurima as he is not actively trying to destroy it, Xerath however is, therefore Xerath gets to be villain and Azir gets to be evil side character. This take is prob horrible, please let me know if i misinterpreted the story.
Azir used to be one of my favorite champs in the game. Certainly my favorite off-meta support although his newfound mana problems, lack of damage and lack of survivability have pretty much ruined him for me. I thought the issues wouldn't be noticeable and that through itemization I could negate the bad and enjoy having a decent passive for once, but I was wrong.
11:01 Ah yes a morally grey bird, look he's morally dark grey, Lawful evil you might say. Good intentions Horrible methods, that circles back to my idea for xerath who sacrafices Himself to obtain power to help others that could lead to more destruction that he cannot control or He becomes a dictator with a different way of doing things, no technacly slavery just with a different code of chains.
He is not lawful evil because lawful evil is using the laws to get benefits he is lawful neutral would a little bit of good, because if he was lawful evil he would just keep the slaves instead of preparing to give them freedom. And if you believe that you should be chaotic and cause a revolution you don't know anything about history as most times when a revolution happens to people in control of the Revolution are horrible people, it also makes sense that he wants power because he is going to literally fight majority of the Nobles of shirima to free the slaves is like the Union fighting the confederacy with less people and no generals.
Even though I've disagreed with every one of your takes, whoopsie... godspeed Nickyboi. 😅 I hope you get to "Z" before Riot starts releasing new champs who are all shadow clones of Zed.
Ok i know this sounds completely odd and i know you already do rapid fire skin reviews, but i was thinking it would be sick if you did a casual skin review and when i say that i dont mean every damn skin because trust me from and person who has all the skins in the game its way to many so i thinking maybe choose a skin line and do 2 or 3 skins from that skin line and just explain the lore of the the skin line and what you like about the skin and your thoughts of the design. Sorry it is a weird suggestion but i just thought it might be something you might wanna do. Also Azir is a very complex champion in the lore and the gameplay, he is downright villian who only really thinks for himself and claims its for the best of Shurima.
11:50 That morality seems out of his control, I mean he's too focused on killing one man and thats his own brother, so intentely he's more evil from his justification of killing him, though in his mind it is justified as he feels betrayed. 11:55 what? Why? I thought Nasus was like the competent person since he's like the only that reads books, so he should understand the reality of things and not the same Bigot asshole that his empoweror became, trying to be a Guide so Azir has a Chance to change the very way to save his soul is right next to him. Yet he's another- You know what just like Zac this story element is too mediocre to work so I'll just act like Nasus spends his days reading books and tranning azir to not be a dic in dicator, and anyone who challenges Nasus will critisized in varied detail or just have a converstation as after his brother sacumming to anger and violence, he himself refuses to commit it.
What about LoR though? His interactions with Nasus suggesting that he's going to get counsel are a somewhat ray of hope, as is Renekton getting more cool-headed with a dorection again
Now I have the urge to write a fanfic about this character. If riot won't give him a redemption are after which he realises how much bad he's done, and how he doesn't really deserve to rule over Shurima he becomes a monk or a hermit of some kind.... I will
I usually do the same, except he becomes a caretaker and artist. Mostly for children - he had children of his own (who died during the cataclysm alongside his wife and many others) and wants to feel like a father again - but also to Renekton, because he figures if he has to beat someone up, better him than Nasus, and really anyone who may need it. He also practices art and music and studies, which he always wanted to do. As for Xerath... he's defeated, transformed back into a human and put in a beautiful garden where he can do whatever he wants, mostly writing books and telling his own side of the story. He hasn't forgiven Azir and never will, so he will also bear this burden. But it's his fault in the end.
Benevolent dictators exist, although they are by far the minority. Ancient Rome had the elected dictator in time of crisis, although that was abused by Caesar during his rule.
it is impossible for a king to be good, as the existence of a kingdom implicitly requires violence and a lower class to function. the horrors only increase with emperors and empires. despite meaning to do good things- even if they accomplish them, a ruler cannot be a good person, as their power is only accumulated through the threat or the infliciton of violence or misery
If you like azir you should play: LIBRARY OF RUINA There are only a handful of characters that are less evil than azir in that game, and there are A LOT of characters (each character gets a concise and effecient introduction before the game moves on to the next fight). Victims dont get much of an introduction in that game, so they dont count as less evil due to lack of information. Not to mention with how much horrible things happen in the game, the feels cannot be understated.
4:56 this is the humanity part, Azir used to choose his humanity over ego until overtime he allowed the power to get to him and allowed his own corruption, he never tried his darnest to make sure slavery was gone, showing his lack of value to xerath as well he made promise he did not keep, leading to his dipecable actions and making him a villain who believes himself the hero. Xerath should be the Hero or vigilante that looks like a villian, is a form of showing Azir's own lack of self reflection or Huminility as guy with anger issues can do it better.
I mean Azir constantly did try to work towards his goal of freeing the slaves. He just knew it had to be done slowly or careful or else he would be assassinated, leading to possivle civil conflict, and all his work undone by whoever replaced him. That's why while he was emperor, he made gradual reforms to improve the lives and well being of the slaves and being lessen the dehumanization of slaves on the eyes of the public. He wasn't power hungry because he purely wanted power. He was carefully navigating a dangerous policital landscape that as far as he knew had already claimed the lvies of his whole family. When he was suggested to ascend, it basically gave him the final piece he needed to truelg free the slaves, as no one would argue against the decree of a god-emperor, removing all the dangers of assassinating and undoing of his work. Is he a Good Alignment character? No. I woudl say Azir is firmly planted in the Lawful Neutral Alingment.
If a character like Azir has to be balanced to make him worst in casual play because in pro play he is way to strong...im sorry be the character has to have a rework its a fundamentally bad design if 90% of your playerbase are casuals and not pros.
What i love the most about Azir is that he has technically 30-40 years old of conciousness despite his ascended status, i think it explains a lot about his behavior
I think if Arcane makes a series for Shurima, Azir and Xerath would make great parallels to Jayce and Viktor, but while Arcane will probably go the route of Jayce not approving of Viktor's extreme methods, Azir would be the one to go too far, becoming corrupted by politics and inflating his ego while Xerath is left as a slave. Overall, if they aren't gonna connect the stories in Arcane directly, a good way to tie them is by the themes in the stories and I can easily see the themes in a Shurima story pairing really well with the themes in the PnZ Arcane.
Heck yea, it's funny sand pidgeon time. Let's just say that Xerath also did an oopsie. A clownery, even. Cause he had to fucked it up just when Azir finally decided to make slavery illegal (although tbf the bird did took it's sweet time for it) See the problem with Azir is that he still has rooted some of the bad teachings his dad has taught to him. It should be needed a new story to make Azir progress as a character, to see that his ego is blinding his judgement. But sadly, this is far from happening because riot is....well... Riot, and they've got Azir's story stuck in time, much like every champion in the roster. They'll prefer to launch 10 skins for ahri before actually letting the story continue on...........in league of legends at least. With the existance of Riot Forge and their excelent track record of allowing the world of runeterra and it's characters to progress with Ruined King, Mageseeker and Convergence, i'm confident that they'll tackle Shurima with a game in the future, allowing Azir to finally move on, and perhaps become a better ruler for the land.
xerath: "azir is not freeing the slaves! better plot a conspiracy to kill him and take matters into my own hands!" azir: "all the slaves of shurima are now free!" xerath, having gone too far in his plan to stop now "...shit"
@@Underworlder5 yeaaaa....not so smart now, are ya you floating shiny man? Xerath got tired of waiting, i can understand. But he kind of screwed it up.
You can be good dictator... IN the first place the word that this come from was from Rome where dictator was leader that was chosen for the times of war to have unified country as normally they have like 2 rulers and some other people. Dictatorship was like 2 year thing or less and was used in times when being more active was necessary (just look at our governments and how slow they act) It could actually be wrong as that could come from Grece, but later part still is true. Regardless, this proves that good dictator can exist
The current understanding of dictator is baloney. Democracy is touted as "good" but clearly it has extreme flaws which has already been debated since the Ancient Greeks. Dictatorships are shown as "evil" because people associate it with Hitler, Stalin, Mao, etc. while ignoring the fact that Atatürk, Lee Kuan Yew, or the 5 Good Emperors exist. Not to mention that these are the same people who despise dictatorships but still give more power to a central government or state to direct and take control of their lives. The best system is always one with a single benevolent and capable ruler, which would shift depending on your definition of one. And no, the perfect "everyone is always welcome and safe" dictator doesn't exist and wouldn't exist pragmatically.
"Every Shuriman character is morally grey"
L take Nicky, cause Rammus is the hero of all Runeterra.
OK.
Ok
ok
OK
Aight
Small note on the meaning of "Xerath" - In ancient Shuriman, the name means "one who shares". In modern Shuriman, it means "devil".
damn that's some top tier hating
"fuck you" *changes the meaning of your name*
azir was such a hater he renamed his ex friend satan
that is so fucking cool
@@yunyomalI feel like seeing it the other way around is worse : he hated him so much he renamed Satan after him
I love all these cuts of hecarim showing up for a split second before the screen turns grey
Got to play agianst him yesterday. Actual nightmare, so I understand the cuts
My favorite part of the match was when Azir went “It’s Aziring time” and then he oppressed every other race
i loled
Azir is a peice of a puzzle, he needs a whole lot of counsel and a whole lot of kindness to become a great king, he has neither
I mean Nasus is there, trying to ensure Azir doesn't repeat the mistakes of the past.
Kinda sounds like viego
@@artafaria except Azir still has a brain and people to tell him to do good.
Viego the ruined simp has none of this. He's far too gone on his toxic obssession with isolde that he can't reason. And it's not like he wants to anyway. Viego is forever cursed as a spirit. Azir has the option still.
That is a raw line right there
@@x-nimator9997 fundamentally azir cares, or at least wants to care about his kingdom and his subjects' wellbeing. Viego does neither.
I think the idea of "I, Azir, am afraid of the nobles staging a coup because they would overthrow me and well, we can't have that, I'm born to rule, I am the destined ruler!" is a bit unfair. Yes, that is be a factor. But it's also important to consider the following.
Say Azir did free the slaves right when he became emperor, and then this feared coup does happen. If Azir survives the coup, no harm no foul. But if Azir were to die in the coup, or get his power ousted from him, what would happen? The slaves would go RIGHT back to being slaves. His efforts would be for naught, and he would not have the power or influence to ever free the slaves, so they would remain slaves. It's not JUST so he can remain in power, damn everything else. It's because he is in a position to do something about it, and he is certain that if he acts right away he will jeopardize that position. That's why he waits until he Ascends. Because then he will have the power to be confident that a coup will not overthrow him, and thus the slaves can remain free. The two desires are not exclusive to each other, and Azir DOES want the slaves freed, which is more than literally anybody else in power in Shurima. If Azir was ousted, there would be nobody else to actually do it. And that's not even getting into the likely significant casualties in the freed slaves, whether or not a coup succeeded or failed.
And yes, he is arrogant and he is doing this out of a sense of "I am the only one capable of doing this". But it's not the only consideration to be made. And this of course doesn't excuse all of the executions and the whole being a dictator part. But saying that him not wanting to be overthrown because he will lose all power and that's the only reason is a tad unfair in my opinion
controversial opinion: birb
counter opinion : birb
Counter counter opinion: pigeon
Counter counter opinion: dird
Birb indeed
Death
I dislike the implication that the dichotomy is good personabhorrently evil
Azir doesn't need a full on "redemption arc", he needs to improved as a person.
Also there is actually nothing for Xerath, he's been fully consumed by lust for power. The baccai and Renekton and all that.
Water and Shade to You is one of my favorite stories in league. Azir blinded by his hatred of Xerath and driven by his ego attempts to slaughter the village Xerath was born in until a little girl reminds him of the kindness he showed Sivir.
Azir's story reminds me of the enlightened monarchs (roughly 1700 Europe) than more average dictators: royalty that wanted some social change, but with hereditary kings still firmly planted on the top of the structure
To be fair the idea of a benevolent dictator isn’t without historical precedent. Some of the first historically known dictators were appointed by the Roman senate to act with absolute power in times of crisis where the senate would be too slow/indecisive to act effectively. Now while many would refuse to yield this power there were many who did after the times of crisis had past, notably the most famous Cincinnatus who famously left his farm and took command of the Roman army, defeated the enemies of Rome and then let go of the power and picked up his plow once more, and is now considered and exemplar of civic duty
In my eyes the problem with Azir is the opposite of Sylas - both are very well written morally grey characters but for some reason riot insists on skewing them as either good (the former) or bad (the latter) instead of just letting them be grey
My strong opinion is that azir should have a visual novel where you can date him
Hatoful Boyfriend?
An Ascended dating sim for all the furries out there?
I’m in
But only if you’re Shuriman and of the right race.
😂
@@artistaroundtheblock2047 yeah if there was a visual novel centered around dating azir then you would probably be shuriman, also I don’t know of a visual novel that allows to customize your characters, typically they’re unseen entity so the person playing it can get more involved
@@Oresicaibi You could maybe customize your background/ stats
I think the Xerath Azir dynamic is really interesting. They made each other. Xerath was enabled by Azir, in an act of kindness. But a single act of kindness was not enough for Xerath. Of course it wasnt. He was a slave. Being granted a name and the ability to read some books was a surface level kindness from an ignorant aristocrat. But he could use Azir. So he did terrible things in the cover of darkness. He fed Azir ambition. Killed his rivals. But the freedom of the slaves seemed to never be coming. So he set up the ascension, so he could usurp it.
But Azir had always wanted to free the slaves. He saw the humanity in Xerath when he named him. Saw that slavery was wrong. He was simply too low in the line of succession. Until these bizarre events kept happening. Acts of god. Xerath whispered to him that it was truly his right to rule. Not just shurima, but everywhere. Azir was seduced by power. A noble with good intentions turned to darkness by someone who wished for nothing more than for the kingdom to fall. A despot created by one who suffered under his predecessors. It was ironic. Yet deep inside of Azir, he still believed what he was doing was for the good of everyone. As he went to ascend, he felt invincible. He could finally do the good that he needed to do. He freed the slaves.
But he had waited too long. Xerath had lost all hope that he would be freed. He had come to hate Azir. Yet, the freedom had come. But it came too late. Too much was already prepared. The stage had been set. Last minute theatrics would not stop him.
And the kingdom fell.
Its a classic tragedy. Its straight up some MacBeth shit. Both Azir and Xerath are extremely complex characters. I really wish Xerath could get an ASU so that he could look better, and maybe get some new voicelines that really lined up with who he is now. Xerath has a lot that could be explored. but, this was an azir video, so Ill leave that for.... like... 5 years from now, when we get to x.
Honestly Azir is probably the most reasonable of the two parties looming over Shurima. Even if they're played as jokes we do see that it's entirely possible to talk to Azir. He's clearly never had to before, and he's incredibly bad at it, but it's still an option that works. I think if Taliyah or Nasus got he could totally be "redeemed". That being said if Xerath does something drastic or someone like KSante tries to immediately confront him he's absolutely going full kill everyone dictator and Shurima is fucked lol.
Yeah, the people calling Azir just blindly evil are wrong
Adam Humes says that morality, and therefore the conceptions of evil and good, is subjective.
Azir kinda falls on the Category of Lawful evil, The ends justify the means, he wanted the best for shurima, but is doing it through a bloody path
@@davidsamudio3899I mean, his bloody way is not as bloody really
@@lok4890 he also can be a bit... unreasonable, he wanted to burn Xerath origin village to the ground just because he was born then and a child talked him out of it
From what I remember in Egyptian mythology, I’m pretty sure you’re correct that Azir is supposed to be more like Ra thematically than Horus. Ra was a more vengeful god while Horus was friendlier I supposed. Also, Ra’s symbol was a sundisk LMAO.
Too many people get "good person" and "good character" confused when talking about this stuff and think that if you find Harvey Birdman, Dictator at Sand an interesting character and a good example of classic hubris then you must approve of his practice of murdering people who disagree with him. These people frustrate me, and yet all of them remain unmurdered. It's the strangest thing.
Feel like lot of content creators completely miss the mark of Azir's paranoia about losing the throne. Azir wasn't paranoid about losing power because he thought he was divinely ordained. He was paranoid because if he just freed the slaves it would most likely led to him bring assassinated like his entire family was, plunge the nation into civil war, and whoever emerged victorious would completely undo all the work he put into freeing the slaves and make all his efforts null and void.
He wasn't some power hungry ruler that believed he was a god. He was a person that knew about the complex and difficult reality of how he had to accomplish his goal while also being fully away of his mortality despite being a emperor. Ascending was less because he thought he deserved it and more of if he ascends no one would be abee to argue against certain decisions, like freeing all the slaves, since of they disagreed with that instead of facing a man they would be facing a demi-god
I think people who claim azir is"le bad" and xerath is "le good" because slavery clearly only watch certain youtuber's videos and do not actually read the supplemental material like LoR
Xerath was once a victim........once.
He no longer is. His motives were twisted with his newfound power.
In some form, he and Azir are the two sides of the same coin.
@@x-nimator9997 being a victim does not make someone immune to victimizing others. i wish more people knew that. after all, xerath is the reason renekton went insane was left with burning hatred for his own brother
@@Underworlder5 i'm very annoyed that ppl keeps painting xerath as the victim still, considering he and azir both have comitted atrocities.
There's a lot of grey tones
Literally Xerath was entirely justified in everything he did, murdering your masters as a slave is based and good actually. There's no amount of murder and battle against your slavers that is morally unjust because you are a literal slave, that's a fate worse than death. He didn't know Shurima would explode when he stole the disc's power, and he didn't know that it would break his mind. Everything Xerath did while enslaved was good. The things he did when he finally gained freedom are literally equivalent to Azir.
@@that_one_MM that is a dangerous mentality to have. there is a limit to how far you can go, no matter how noble your goal it. this kind of thinking is exactly how good people go bad
I always felt that Azir needs a little more grace. Not saying you can't him, he has very hateable traits. But as the story pans he didn't renege on his deal. He was going to free the slaves. The thing is since he was attached to Shurima and not the slaves he was willing to wait to godhood for absolute authority. With that authority he was going to free the slaves. The problem is that he didn't tell Xerath that and he spoke out of turn with him. Xerath understandably has been going through a whole lot of shit for the hope that Azir would keep his promise. That hope shattered when Azir spoke out of turn. Then Xerath just went fuck it, better die free(really rule free with power) than be alive with my people as slaves. Which hurts the most cause when Xerath did what he did, Azir was going to keep his end of the deal. Literally thanking Xerath for his patience, then bang the city falls and brothers hate each other. Do we need more scenes and context for them both? I dont know, but with what is given even as a black american is tragic for both parties.
Aye it always struck me as odd that people seem to ignore the part that he was fully intending to free the slaves, and it does make sense to want the power of ascencion in order to make sure the nobility and other slave owners couldn't go against him at all. Because it is important to remember that freeing the slaves wouldn't be all that easy, a lot of powerful people's prosperity relied on them. Doing so recklessly is just a recipe for rebellion and strife. He should have communicated that with Xerath, and it is stupid he didn't, we didn't get a reason why he didn't iirc, and that's what makes the story tragic.
Azir at the moment feels like he could go either way, he could become a legitimate villain if people keep snubbing him, assuming he is in fact evil and treating him accordingly. Road to hell is paved with good intentions and all that. Or he could become a saviour for the region of Shurima, provided people actually give him a chance and try to help him. I haven't kept up to date with his lore so I have no clue if he's done anything bad.
@@cindermoth3421 it's ok if ur not up to date with Azir's lore, Riot isn't either
@@cindermoth3421 well even understanding that, the argument can be made that Azir didn't even deserve Ascension - in fact, it's my headcannon that if Xerath hadn't stopped him, Azir would've been rejected by the Sun Disk due to the fact that Azir put the safety of his empire over the safety of his people. yes, announcing the freedom of the slaves prior to his ritual would've meant putting himself at risk, but it is through that selfish act of not fulfilling his promise and being more preoccupied with his rule rather than the treatment of his people that he would've been killed during the ritual.
@@cindermoth3421 that is one thing that irks me. slavery is undoubtedly bad, but some people have a way too black and white view of it and go "just end slavery bro". kind of hard to do that if the nation has engaged in slave labor for centuries and likely relies on it for a stable income. azir only felt comfortable abolishing slavery when he had enough power to do whatever he wanted with no repercussions. ending such a tradition is not something done overnight, and definitely not alone
@@Underworlder5 Exactly. I was so confused on why everyone was saying azir was this evil bitch I actually really liked his story
I have to applaud nicky’s abality to comment for us while getting ran over by a horse 27 times in a row as he plays azir.
At some point I even wondered if it was voice over-ed this time around, I think that says a lot !
I’d be stuttering and asphyxiating in my own sweat and tears if I were in his place.
Great work.
totally unrelated to the discussion: i love how every single time hecarim shows up on Nicky's screen he literally just fucking DIES lol
12:45 Isn't it that azir creates sand soldiers made of sand in the image of soldiers of the past and not raise the dead? It wouldn't really make sense for someone who can control the sand in many ways to just have necromancy powers.
11:34 from what I've seen either its both, or just azir.
again his good intentions mean nothing if its actions do nothing, just because he cured cancer doesn't justify genocide, espically when he does it with the purpose of saving only himself.
Xerath is the monster after the Ancencion, he was Morally grey whe he used to be human, now he's just a villian adding to Riots bad attemps to make Tyrants look like they have a point with slavery, with unjust athourity.
Azir is the vilian, he's monster who believes himself as the hero and thats the point he needs to change otherwise he's never gonna be revived ever again and shurmia may stay dead for aslong as someone else doesn't just figure it out.(Azir thinks he's the only one who can save shurmia, again Arrogance and egotism destroying him)
Basically Azir is Dark grey, Xerath before acension is grey, After he's a villian, Renekton is a poor soul so grey and Nasus is light grey.
Controversial opinion : Dictator just means leader with supreme power. Indeed, dictators always end up morally fucked, because that is just what supreme power does to a mf. But the definition of dictator does not implie being a douch, a dictator could theoretically be a good and kind leader (althought extremely unlikely)
Still a Genius series idea. Low effort but consistent and entertaining
He doesn’t miss. Here’s for another 3 years of CCR
Creedence Clearwater Revival?
This series is unironically helping me understand champs I don’t play both in gameplay and lore
Azir is the most fun to play champ in my personal opinion. He is a literal god in ARAM.
Well, you said were prepared for it so here goes: All of you "lore masters" who hate Azir are stupid and I, the number one Azir apologist, am here to explain why.
@5:54 For you to immediately assume that Azir is not only the reason for his mother's infertility but is silencing people to cover it up is not only a revealing display of bias, but it also shows very clearly that you did not read Xearth's Bio. In Xearth bio it's not just implied that he is the one responsible for all of these incidents- *IT'S EXPLICITLY STATED*. He told himself everything he did he did to keep Azir safe, initially anyway. Azir's father hated him, and the idea that he was in line for the throne filled him with rage. Xerath knew the instant the queen produced another viable heir Azir's father would have him assassinated. On the topic of the executions, we don't know the context surrounding these. Regardless, openly speaking ill of not only a prince but the *crown* prince next in line for the throne- _IN THESE TIMES?_ It would have looked worse if he DIDN'T have them executed.
@6:22 *_NOT READING XEARTH'S BIO MOMENT_* Xearth, the _literal_ closest person in the world to him whom he loved as a brother, spent *YEARS* filling Azir's head with delusions of grandeur so he could get him to attempt ascension and steal the power for himself. Why? Xearth thought Azir would free him the moment he could, and when he didn't Xearth assumed the worst of him- that he was no different from the people who put him in chains. But Azir wasn't just some pompous asshole, he really believed in his vision of Shurima as a golden, blessed land and wanted to share that bounty with the rest of the world. Xerath saw his angle and pushed him in a certain direction. We normally don't blame people for being manipulated, especially when it's easy to see how they could be manipulated, but apparently, victim blaming is the cool hip thing to do in a certain section of the lore community.
@10:17 Yes, yes, dictators bad, fascists bad, communists okay, and socialists good. Great, now that we've all got all of our leftist brownies points out of the way, we can actually talk. Azir's character archetype is based on the concept of a "benevolent dictator" which states that the best, most efficient form of governance is one where one central power acts altruistically and makes only the best decisions for the good of his people. And this seems to be in line with Azir's vision of a worldwide Shurima. He believes himself a good man dedicated to making good decisions on behalf of the people. The problem with this archetype is it's usually impossible to achieve. Even the most benevolent dictator is someone's tyrant and I think Azir's stories do a good job of exploring this concept. If you want to read more on it I strongly recommend the TVtropes article on the topic. So yeah, it is a bit more nuanced than "dictator bad" *shock emoji*
@13:15 I agree with some of this. A lot of Shurima is morally gray and I'd like to believe Azir is being built up for a redemption Arc (scorching Xearth's village can be seen as his lowest moment). But I cannot agree with making Azir out to be a villain- especially not in the grander narrative. This is only possible with a very selective reading of the text. He's a tragic hero more than anything. He desperately wants to do good and truly believes that he is, but the suit of negative character traits he acquires throughout his life prevents him from seeing things outside of his perspective. 'Hero with an F in Good' is another trope that fits him really well. I don't think Shurima has a TRUE villain, but if I had to choose somebody the choice is obvious. It's Xearth. Uneqovically. A) He's certified insane. B) He has all of Azir's power-hungry nature with none of the good qualities to balance it out. C) He destroyed an *ENTIRE CIVILIZATION* because he _THOUGHT_ his best friend wasn't a real one. Anyone trying to call Azir a villain when Xearth is in the room has _not read Xearth's Bio_. Which is quite good by the way, they do a really good job of making him a complex character rather than evil for the sake of evil.
Ultimately, you cannot tell Azir's story with Xearth's and the whole thing is very sad. An entire empire was felled because two extremely good friends had a critical failure in communication and interpersonal dynamics. It's the type of grater-than-life narrative with a very relatable human core that I love. Xerath is clearly the bad guy here but as I said before I don't think it's fair to call him a True Villian. He's the product of an inhumane system that offers you only two options: surrender or violence. And he saw where surrendering got his family. If Azir could have set aside his emperor's pride and treated Xearth like the equals he said they were then all of this could have been avoided. If Xearth could have trusted Azir and been open and vulnerable with him then this also could have been avoided. I hope Azir can have a full-blown redemption arc, just to make all the haters mad yet I don't think that's where the story is going. I think their stories end with a double 'Redemption Equals Death', but not before joining hands in razing Shurima one last time with their petty war. And I'll still be right there saying "Azir did nothing wrong".
Its weird because if Azir wasnt ruling then the slaves wouldnt be able to get free so its kinda dumb to be like,"oh hes just obsessed with power" like yeah he kinda had to be in power for slavery to stop.
I still can't understand why most of the people thinks what Azir is "evil", because of the slaves.
Yes Azir is a jerk, selfish, ego-hungry emperor, who blinded himself and let the Shurima die.
But it was in the past. From his voice lines and main story, Azir now is much more wiser. (just read his short story god danmit) He learned how his pride doomed Shurima and what it was his fault. Not Xerath. His.
He let Shurima die.
And now he wants to bring people to the glory. Riot even himself said what Azir is a noble, but pride emperor.
He is a good person inside and unlike ANY of other leaders, he REALLY CARE about his own people and how his mistakes doomed everything. He REALLY wants begin a new era, where his people live in paradise.
I still can't get it how people sympathy more to Xerath, which is a true evil in this story. (Just read their story's and combine with cards from LoR. This situation remind me about Aatrox. Aatrox is a amazing character, but people doesn't want to read his lore. Situation with Azir is the same. People just *don't want* to understand characters clearly and judge them, like they know them.)
I really like the format of these videos, feels like listening to a friend while playing league. Pls keep posting!
Azir: I will unite the whole continent of Shurima under the banners of my glorious empire.
The community: What a fucking dictator.
Swain: I will unite the whole world under the banner of my glorious empire.
The community: OMG what a chad.
I don't care how complex they try to make Noxus, its very clear they are the bad guys and that's okay.
@@TonySandMan to be fair, besides the Avarosen there are rly no giod guys in this Game
@@bartagame_3070 There were, but they made them antithetically racist for “complexity”
@@TonySandMan wait they made them racist? Isnt theire Goal to unite all of Freljord so that starvation, coldness and survival would be beaten thogeter?
@@bartagame_3070 i was referring to Demacia, the og good guys
The words “Azir” and “casual”being mentioned in the same sentence is funny to me.
Shout out to the absolute menace of a Hecarim
"I wish you were free, I wish you weren't a slave PIGEON VERSUS HORSE!"
Truly the most logical of conclusions to that sentence.
Azir reads as a heroic character that is easily influenced to me. I think he's a good person on the inside, but too indoctrinated by being, y'know, an emperor's son.
I really want to know, what exactly is evil or bad about azir? I dont really see that bit
@@lok4890 As Nicky puts it, you can't really be a "good" dictator. While I do agree that he's relatively kind given his position, he still actively kills people that besmirch his name.
@@SingingInferno fair enough on that bit, although that bit of executing people was speciffically on the bit where people started claiming that Azir was the cause of the queen getting constant stillborns. I think that is a bit further than just talking shit about him, but not cool still.
@@lok4890 Yeah, but responding to rumor-mongering via execution is a bit harsh, even for a an emperor. Feels very Pharaoh Ramses.
@@SingingInferno yeah pretty much. Although acussing someone of being the reason someone else gets stillborns is kinda dark lol.
Yeah, still, you are right, its way too much for it.
Stoneweaver: So Azir, you say you are the emperor of all Shurima?
Azir: YES. I. AM.
Stoneweaver: But I don't recognize you as my emperor
Azir: HELL. TO. YOU.
People confuse good character with good person, Azir is not a good person, he's a tyrant but also he's charm enough to people not to question his methods
Azir didnt prevent his mother from having children, Xerath did.
Xerath instilled arrogance into Azir, he used to be a decent guy before all the manipulation.
5:42 Well then isn't that a flawed individual, He's a person who allowed his worst impulsises to control him and become a horrible person: a tyrany.
He's not morally grey anymore, He's villain and sadly So xerath because Riot wants you to think "I mean if both are evil then who really is the right" when one shouldn't be at all since Freedom is objectively a moral good action to give and have, Xerath doesn't care for freedom anymore he just became Azir with lighitng which sucks ass as Xerath is supposed to be the consequense not another problem for everyone.
I just like how he’s portrayed a bit like Sivir’s boomer grandpa in LOR lol.
now i got the imagery of sivir trying to teach azir how to use a computer
@@Underworlder5"how many hextechs does this one cost"
10:16 You can, in fact, be a dictator without being a 'f*ing awful person'.
A dictator is just someone with full powers; they can be good or bad, as the definition doesn't specify. On the other hand, a tyrant is a cruel leader with full powers.
A tyrant is necessarily bad, not a dictator.
There are a few examples of dictators that can be described as 'good', like Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus, some Roman emperors like Marcus Aurelius & Antoninus Pius (although they had the Senate to mediate their power), and even perhaps George Washington (though it seems like a stretch).
There are other historical examples of people who were given full powers, yet were not tyrannical or awful.
A dictatorship is about the power someone has.
A tyranny is about the way said person uses their powers.
Great video though !
14:04 which yeah that sucks ass, they could've given him the libertian look since thats his hole thing, Knowlegde he'd have a bag he carries for books he likes to read, wear heavy armor with robes that make him clean shaven and protected except for his face as I'm going to ingore him being basically azir with death powers and make him the only Human like acended out of all of them, so he'd show his dog face with glasses as his sickness has disrupted his eyes and him having a disability as an acended connects him even more as a person, someone who's imperfect, someone who's human.
Atleast thats a way to improve Riot Nasus that skinline could've been so Awsome.
Not that I want Shurima Fried Chicken to have some right, but it'd be kinda tragic and funny if Azir freed the slaves, then got the boot, and the new rulers just said fuck that they're as free as trials that require your credit card
Azir feels like a great value swain lore wise.
4:07 talk about timing, still though I do belief Azir is a Villian with humanity a Human Villian, since I mean his actions say it himself, he isn't a Mustache tweller which makes him intersting and work just he isn't morally grey thats not the point, its that he chooses to be evil as a person, him being dark grey is that example or morality.
Xerath used Terrible methods to free his people, he's not a villian because of it he's more of an antagonist with good intentions terrible methods that work, Xerath should have comeback with only one idea in mind:Burn that Bird and his pathetic sandcastle to the ground and free the slaves.
as He then excuses any action he does like gaslighting Renekton to get in the way of his own brother so he has someone less to deal with.
no no, Xerath is a mustache twirler level villain. He is pillaging and destroying everything he sees, and killing anyone he pleases (including the slaves he didnt free because he killed everyone in shurima) Azir is evil, but not a villain because he isnt really dangerous. Being a horrible person dosnt make you a villain, doing horrible things does, and Azir dosnt do much of that while its Xeraths entire life rn.
10:10 Technically you could be a dictator and still be kind. In the Roman Republic the word dictator designated a temporary magistrate who was granted extraordinary powers in order to deal with state crises. Modern dictators, however, resemble ancient tyrants rather than ancient dictators. (Julius Caesar was proclaimed "dictator (consul) for life" (dictator perpetuo))
In its purest sense the word mean absolute power in one persons hand (absolutism is also a different expression for the same phenomen)
There are many examples of good dictators, Ho Chi Minh, Tito, Atatürk, Lee Kuan Yew, Gaddafi, Sir Seretse Khama are all examples of good dictators.
i have never actually read azir's story as i have trouble reading for more than 3 minutes and the only reason anyone has ever given me before for why azir is bad was "he didn't free the slaves" which i found weird because "i'll stop being emperor or get killed if i free the slaves" isn't just a completely selfish reason to not do it, because the thing is, if he frees the slaves and the other elites dethrone him or assassinate him, they'll just enslave everyone he freed, if he manages to even free anyone besides xerath before he loses power/dies, waiting until he knows he is safe was definitely selfish at least partially, but it was still the correct decision, so until now, thinking that's the only reason people think azir was bad i believed he was a good person until resurection/ascention which corrupted his mind in some way and cause him to go from "i want the best for my people" to "everything will be mine and anyone who tries stopping me will die"
i think the reason a lot of people are rubbed the wrong way by this story is similar to sylas, an oppressed person is potrayed as the villain, xerath, a slave wants the freedom of all slaves but he possibly kills his best friends family and then his best friend for it and then causes almost everyone to die, the elites, innocent people including slaves, sylas, a mage in demacia tries to save someone, his powers go rouge and he accidentally kills someone, gets imprisoned and wants to free all mages, he is going to be executed so he takes the power of his best friend, betraying her by revealing her secret and also kills a lot of people, some innocent ones and he is so set on his goal to free mages that he has no problem killing his fellow mages to achieve that goal
i do get why some people could be mad about that
You sir, without even reading his lore, got it right the most, damn
6:50 I really disagree with the take that Azir waiting for the power of ascension to back up his decision to free the slaves and protect his power as entirely selfish. If he frees the slaves at an inopportune moment and he's dethroned in a coup, what point did freeing the slaves even serve? He needs that power to back up and maintain that call, because what happens in the case that he's dethroned? Well, the next ruler is probably going to be someone who wants to maintain the status quo and keep the slaves enslaved.
All I’m saying is Azir is my favorite design for a champion
Whats amazing to me that Nickyboi while playing a game of League of Legends didn't show the slightest amount of frustration at all. Missed a cannon? No reaction. Dies to Hecarim? Not a word. Truly an inspiration.
9:42 It's a step in the right direction But it ofcourse doesn't change him for the better, it just makes even more egotistical.
Again Azir is a Villian with some humanity left in him and Xerath should've been the oppisite, a hero with questionalble methods, Brutally destroying the tyrant is fine, since they don't give you any other choice, just allowing the hatred and seek for vengence may lead to trying to kill anyone who's related aka Sivir even thought she doesn't care to rule at all, prefers freedom.
Basically they did Xerath bad man, he shouldn't be the sterotipical villian, his transformation is similar to Brand with the hole power thing, while brand personality I feel he should a representation of teh temptation of power in fire via being a seductive Charred man convincing you his melting flesh and bones are perfection, Xerath should be using it for something else than the most generic "I want to take over the world" idea that could be given, Why does he want to take over the world? if it was to give people their freedom I'd get it, being Ironcally a tyrant himself due to using the same power, just convincing himself he's freeing them from their shackles while adding ones with extra steps.
If he is this careful about Azir and racism.
Oh boy imagine what will happen if he plays kassadin
Kassadin isn't even racist tho, only his players are.
Thing is, Kassadin is not even racist in the lore.
Who cares about the players anyway, it's the character what matters.
@@Rev1n05 As a huge Kassadin fanatic (only from lore, never actually played the champ), I doubt that's gonna be the case here. Kassadin seems very far from a racist, he'd problably despise the playerbase lol.
1:42 I believe is terrible that Xerath a Character made to be the consequenses of Azir is the "bad guy" it doesn't make sense that he wants to take over the world just because, he should be changed to fit his own goal with maybe more focus on Revenge and whats the point of it?
Azir, the racist slavowing Tyrant is the Villian, I can't see how he's not, BUT he's a Complex Villian with an dilema with his Ego and self.
He wants to be good just mess it up due to his uncontrolled pride getting in the way, He's isn't morally grey he's akin more to a Dark gray character who is evil with humanity.
Xerath should be the oppisite a Light gray individual, someone's whos good with flaws that go against that.
Nasus is mostly light gray, the light is him as person being a good person who wants his brother back and gray in the since he's not exactly doing anything against the Slavery.
Renekton is holding onto unjustified rage, though he believes its justified due to his memory and emotions, making him dark grey, he only targets Nasus thats it.
Basically I don't believe there aren'y villians or heros there are villians Azir is one, just not every character is too simple except for The stupid execution of Xerath that I believe mess up the message of getting better, as if Azir refuses to change Xerath SHOULD Rip him apart then free the slaves himself, so either azir allows the poeple he's damaged to Destroy him or he redeems himself.
He's a villian that has the choice to be human, Xerath should be the Result of his only choosing his ego and Nasus and rekenton need more development.
Nasus is as evil as azir is, he does nothing about the tyrany or slaves in shurima, and he kills anyone who stand against him.
Renekton is a violent psychopath that kills anything that comes near him, he then preceeds to eat them, enough said.
Xerath is a violent tyrant that randomly destroys things and people because "i need more power"
Azir is a tyrant that embodies historical egyptian pharaohs, he abuses his power and kills anyone who stands against him. The redeeming quality is that he cares for his people and country, and wants whats best for them.
The thing with Azir and Nasus is that they are born into a time where everyone is evil if judged by modern standards, but judging by the times standards Azir is almost and ideal ruler. The thing is, you cant really condemn everyone in a society for inaction and not fixing the entire society instantly. Regents back then would also just kill anyone who disrespected them (disagreed) dosnt mean that every monarch ever was a horrible person, and we nowadays have just become moral paragons. Morality is subjective and judging by the times morality Azir and Nasus are pretty standup people.
I love how everytime in the match when you see hecarim start charging, it always cuts to nicky being dead seconds later lol
FUG YEAH!! ANOTHER DOPE CASUAL REVIEW BABY! WHOOP WHOOP!
Look at the Lux comic and the way it was written, I'm afraid Azir is cut from the same mold. "Oh this poor poor dictator is so nice and sweet and these tormented people who lived in agony all their life who finally decided to grab the ruling class by the balls are so mean to him this is a moraly gray story boohoo"
Why do you all hate the slave owning dictator so much?? He did one good thing, so that makes him good obviously.
"Morally grey" seems to have evolved into code for "this character is obviously an asshole, but for some reason I very much relate to them/find them attractive, so I'll just focus on their singular redeeming quality and not think about how these feelings reflect on me personally."
@@A.C_B. legit the takes riot writters are making are bizarre to me. I'm not implying that they are like this or like that, I don't know them, but what they write about is often.... uncomfortable.Not in a good way, in a concerning way.
@@nonamesorry7135 bro in the story they very much make it a point that he is a terrible person by our standards, but the thing is, EVERYONE from before year 1900 is a horrible monster judging by modern day standards. We are going to be seen as barbaric savages in 200 years, but that does not mean that every person living now should be condemned. Nobody is a paragon of either evil or good, Azir is terrible in the way he rules, but that ruling system was already in place and it was hopeless for him to ever do anything else. If we judge him on intentions hes a fine person, but hes actions are cartoonishly evil, that is definitly morally grey. Also alot of rebellions were horrible, and the leaders were terrible people, not all stories have a villain and a hero, just because Xerath is bad dosnt mean Azir is good. Azir is an evil dictator but not the immediate danger to shurima as he is not actively trying to destroy it, Xerath however is, therefore Xerath gets to be villain and Azir gets to be evil side character.
This take is prob horrible, please let me know if i misinterpreted the story.
Cry more
If Azir is gonna be that controversial, the skies help us when he's gonna discuss Swain...
I love how nicky is getting beat up and losing but he's still going with the explanation, like "eh, a normal day of league".
Xerath Biden Blast Azir and dies. That's the funniest thing I've heard this week
Azir used to be one of my favorite champs in the game. Certainly my favorite off-meta support although his newfound mana problems, lack of damage and lack of survivability have pretty much ruined him for me. I thought the issues wouldn't be noticeable and that through itemization I could negate the bad and enjoy having a decent passive for once, but I was wrong.
Well damn i did not know that first half of azirs lore or the dead people control thing
11:01 Ah yes a morally grey bird, look he's morally dark grey, Lawful evil you might say.
Good intentions Horrible methods, that circles back to my idea for xerath who sacrafices Himself to obtain power to help others that could lead to more destruction that he cannot control or He becomes a dictator with a different way of doing things, no technacly slavery just with a different code of chains.
He is not lawful evil because lawful evil is using the laws to get benefits he is lawful neutral would a little bit of good, because if he was lawful evil he would just keep the slaves instead of preparing to give them freedom.
And if you believe that you should be chaotic and cause a revolution you don't know anything about history as most times when a revolution happens to people in control of the Revolution are horrible people, it also makes sense that he wants power because he is going to literally fight majority of the Nobles of shirima to free the slaves is like the Union fighting the confederacy with less people and no generals.
_Heavy from TF2, stretching his left hand to the sky_
BIRD!!!!
Even though I've disagreed with every one of your takes, whoopsie... godspeed Nickyboi. 😅 I hope you get to "Z" before Riot starts releasing new champs who are all shadow clones of Zed.
Ok i know this sounds completely odd and i know you already do rapid fire skin reviews, but i was thinking it would be sick if you did a casual skin review and when i say that i dont mean every damn skin because trust me from and person who has all the skins in the game its way to many so i thinking maybe choose a skin line and do 2 or 3 skins from that skin line and just explain the lore of the the skin line and what you like about the skin and your thoughts of the design.
Sorry it is a weird suggestion but i just thought it might be something you might wanna do.
Also Azir is a very complex champion in the lore and the gameplay, he is downright villian who only really thinks for himself and claims its for the best of Shurima.
dear god the cut at 10:38 is actually way too funny
I also would love to see the lore of the darkins in ancient Shurima, I heard Xolaani dispised Azir
11:50 That morality seems out of his control, I mean he's too focused on killing one man and thats his own brother, so intentely he's more evil from his justification of killing him, though in his mind it is justified as he feels betrayed.
11:55 what? Why? I thought Nasus was like the competent person since he's like the only that reads books, so he should understand the reality of things and not the same Bigot asshole that his empoweror became, trying to be a Guide so Azir has a Chance to change the very way to save his soul is right next to him.
Yet he's another- You know what just like Zac this story element is too mediocre to work so I'll just act like Nasus spends his days reading books and tranning azir to not be a dic in dicator, and anyone who challenges Nasus will critisized in varied detail or just have a converstation as after his brother sacumming to anger and violence, he himself refuses to commit it.
What about LoR though? His interactions with Nasus suggesting that he's going to get counsel are a somewhat ray of hope, as is Renekton getting more cool-headed with a dorection again
Now I have the urge to write a fanfic about this character. If riot won't give him a redemption are after which he realises how much bad he's done, and how he doesn't really deserve to rule over Shurima he becomes a monk or a hermit of some kind.... I will
I usually do the same, except he becomes a caretaker and artist. Mostly for children - he had children of his own (who died during the cataclysm alongside his wife and many others) and wants to feel like a father again - but also to Renekton, because he figures if he has to beat someone up, better him than Nasus, and really anyone who may need it. He also practices art and music and studies, which he always wanted to do.
As for Xerath... he's defeated, transformed back into a human and put in a beautiful garden where he can do whatever he wants, mostly writing books and telling his own side of the story. He hasn't forgiven Azir and never will, so he will also bear this burden. But it's his fault in the end.
Benevolent dictators exist, although they are by far the minority. Ancient Rome had the elected dictator in time of crisis, although that was abused by Caesar during his rule.
BRO WE STILL AT A????!?!?!?😭😭
2:09
With actual brown/ black people as Shurimans PLEASE!!!!!!
You should add a win/lose tracker at the end of the videos
it is impossible for a king to be good, as the existence of a kingdom implicitly requires violence and a lower class to function. the horrors only increase with emperors and empires. despite meaning to do good things- even if they accomplish them, a ruler cannot be a good person, as their power is only accumulated through the threat or the infliciton of violence or misery
If you like azir you should play:
LIBRARY OF RUINA
There are only a handful of characters that are less evil than azir in that game, and there are A LOT of characters (each character gets a concise and effecient introduction before the game moves on to the next fight).
Victims dont get much of an introduction in that game, so they dont count as less evil due to lack of information.
Not to mention with how much horrible things happen in the game, the feels cannot be understated.
cant wait for the xerath review
4:56 this is the humanity part, Azir used to choose his humanity over ego until overtime he allowed the power to get to him and allowed his own corruption, he never tried his darnest to make sure slavery was gone, showing his lack of value to xerath as well he made promise he did not keep, leading to his dipecable actions and making him a villain who believes himself the hero.
Xerath should be the Hero or vigilante that looks like a villian, is a form of showing Azir's own lack of self reflection or Huminility as guy with anger issues can do it better.
I mean Azir constantly did try to work towards his goal of freeing the slaves. He just knew it had to be done slowly or careful or else he would be assassinated, leading to possivle civil conflict, and all his work undone by whoever replaced him. That's why while he was emperor, he made gradual reforms to improve the lives and well being of the slaves and being lessen the dehumanization of slaves on the eyes of the public. He wasn't power hungry because he purely wanted power. He was carefully navigating a dangerous policital landscape that as far as he knew had already claimed the lvies of his whole family. When he was suggested to ascend, it basically gave him the final piece he needed to truelg free the slaves, as no one would argue against the decree of a god-emperor, removing all the dangers of assassinating and undoing of his work.
Is he a Good Alignment character? No. I woudl say Azir is firmly planted in the Lawful Neutral Alingment.
13:00 ah yes my favorite villain, Jewfar
Anyone have a link to the "bird" TF2 clip from the fanart section at the start?
If a character like Azir has to be balanced to make him worst in casual play because in pro play he is way to strong...im sorry be the character has to have a rework its a fundamentally bad design if 90% of your playerbase are casuals and not pros.
What i love the most about Azir is that he has technically 30-40 years old of conciousness despite his ascended status, i think it explains a lot about his behavior
I am afraid the day Nicky say "welcome everyone to a aFriday Night Funkin..." unless is an update on the Mod
You hope we're human beings and not monster champs? What'd you do to the teal Nicky boi?
I think if Arcane makes a series for Shurima, Azir and Xerath would make great parallels to Jayce and Viktor, but while Arcane will probably go the route of Jayce not approving of Viktor's extreme methods, Azir would be the one to go too far, becoming corrupted by politics and inflating his ego while Xerath is left as a slave. Overall, if they aren't gonna connect the stories in Arcane directly, a good way to tie them is by the themes in the stories and I can easily see the themes in a Shurima story pairing really well with the themes in the PnZ Arcane.
isnt it that azir has 2 lore cinematics before he came out, that's why almost everyone knew about him?
love azir man he's so sick been playing him since release
Azir is a mix of ra and Horus because ra is the sun god and generally ruler whereas Horus was sometimes a ruler and also the bird one
"Everyone likes their villains."
WW2 documentary enjoyers be like :
1:45 Taliyah is pretty objectively doin da good stuff iirc
Ope lmao literal seconds later
Shurima show lets go! The visuals would be stunning.
love the cut at 10:37
Wait so Azir was human before ascension? Is that how Sivir is one of his descendants? Unless she is secretly part birb too 😳
yes. thats how ascension works
Heck yea, it's funny sand pidgeon time.
Let's just say that Xerath also did an oopsie. A clownery, even. Cause he had to fucked it up just when Azir finally decided to make slavery illegal (although tbf the bird did took it's sweet time for it)
See the problem with Azir is that he still has rooted some of the bad teachings his dad has taught to him. It should be needed a new story to make Azir progress as a character, to see that his ego is blinding his judgement. But sadly, this is far from happening because riot is....well... Riot, and they've got Azir's story stuck in time, much like every champion in the roster. They'll prefer to launch 10 skins for ahri before actually letting the story continue on...........in league of legends at least.
With the existance of Riot Forge and their excelent track record of allowing the world of runeterra and it's characters to progress with Ruined King, Mageseeker and Convergence, i'm confident that they'll tackle Shurima with a game in the future, allowing Azir to finally move on, and perhaps become a better ruler for the land.
xerath: "azir is not freeing the slaves! better plot a conspiracy to kill him and take matters into my own hands!"
azir: "all the slaves of shurima are now free!"
xerath, having gone too far in his plan to stop now "...shit"
@@Underworlder5 yeaaaa....not so smart now, are ya you floating shiny man?
Xerath got tired of waiting, i can understand. But he kind of screwed it up.
talk about the skins if you have time at the end please
Who else is hyped for Lewis the gator's champion review?
The more I hear Azur lore, the more I hear a 40k Necron overlord
You can be good dictator... IN the first place the word that this come from was from Rome where dictator was leader that was chosen for the times of war to have unified country as normally they have like 2 rulers and some other people.
Dictatorship was like 2 year thing or less and was used in times when being more active was necessary (just look at our governments and how slow they act)
It could actually be wrong as that could come from Grece, but later part still is true.
Regardless, this proves that good dictator can exist
Not the current meaning of the word dictator.
obviously in the video he meant the current understanding of the word dictator
The current understanding of dictator is baloney. Democracy is touted as "good" but clearly it has extreme flaws which has already been debated since the Ancient Greeks. Dictatorships are shown as "evil" because people associate it with Hitler, Stalin, Mao, etc. while ignoring the fact that Atatürk, Lee Kuan Yew, or the 5 Good Emperors exist. Not to mention that these are the same people who despise dictatorships but still give more power to a central government or state to direct and take control of their lives. The best system is always one with a single benevolent and capable ruler, which would shift depending on your definition of one. And no, the perfect "everyone is always welcome and safe" dictator doesn't exist and wouldn't exist pragmatically.
10:00 bro really used tp 7 seconds before it got uprgaded wtf